Amazon to Deploy Nvidia Blackwell Chips

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Paytm’s Losses Widen on Banking Unit Wind-Down

India’s Paytm [PAYTM:NS] hinted that it will lay off some of its workforce. “While we continue to invest in the merchant sales team, as well as risk and compliance functions, we expect reductions in other employee costs,” CEO Vijay Sharma said in its latest earnings release issued on Wednesday. The fintech’s Q4 net loss widened from ₹1.7bn to ₹5.5bn as it grappled with the financial impact of the Reserve Bank of India ordering it to wind down its banking unit.

Microsoft and G42 to Build $1bn Data Centre in Kenya

Kenya is about to get a hyperscale data centre after Microsoft [MSFT] and UAE-based artificial intelligence (AI) firm G42 announced plans to build a $1bn facility to increase cloud computing capacity across East Africa “This is the single biggest step to advance the availability of digital technology in, I think, the country’s history,” Microsoft President and Vice Chair Brad Smith was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. Back in April, Microsoft invested $1.5bn in G42 to accelerate AI development.

AWS to Deploy Nvidia’s Powerful Blackwell Chips

AI chip king Nvidia [NVDA] powered to a new all-time high on Tuesday ahead of its earnings. Investors will be paying close attention to updates on orders of its Blackwell GPUs announced in March and expected to start shipping in the current quarter. Amazon [AMZN] cloud unit AWS is purchasing the chipmaker’s latest generation chip for the two companies’ joint venture Project Ceiba, which is aiming to build the world’s biggest supercomputer.

Airbnb to Expand EV Charging Amenities

Electric vehicle (EV) charging for Airbnb [ABNB] guests is set to be more accessible after the home-rental platform agreed a deal with ChargePoint [CHPT], to bring charging points to more listings across the US. ChargePoint President and CEO Rick Wilmer said the move would help “Airbnb hosts appeal to more travelers by delivering a frictionless charging experience for their guests”. The number of people using Airbnb’s EV charging filter grew more than 80% from 2022 to 2023.

First Solar Soars On AI-Powered Electricity Demand

First Solar’s share price jumped 8% Tuesday on a positive note from UBS, which said that the company is “an overlooked, direct beneficiary” of AI-powered electricity demand. Earnings could surge by 270% by 2027 as companies hunt for cleaner and greener ways to keep their data centres and AI applications running, UBS analysts argued. According to National Grid [NGG] CEO John Pettigrew, commercial data centre electricity demand could increase six-fold over the next decade.